Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - In a battle of British stars that many are calling a Fight of the Year contender, former WBA and Ring 168-pound world champion Callum Smith (31-2, 22 KOs) of Liverpool took Olympic Bronze Medalist Joshua Buatsi's (19-1, 13 KOs) unbeaten record with a thrilling unanimous decision (119-110, 115-113, 116-112) for the interim WBO light heavyweight title.

The wide judges’ decision differed from the opinion of the DAZN ringside analysts, who would not have been surprised if the bout was scored a draw.

The two brought the crowd to their feet multiple times to start the pay-per-view portion of the broadcast. Smith worked over Buatsi’s body early, which paid dividends as the fight went on. Buatsi, the Olympian from London, saw success when he was able to keep the Liverpudlian at the end of his jab and box from the outside. Buatsi kept his distance, landing significantly more jabs than Smith.

However, Smith was the more effective puncher in close quarters, landing 91 more power shots, 25% of which were to the body. Buatsi was taken to the local hospital as a precautionary measure.

Reflecting on his new title, Smith admitted, “I feel good. Obviously it wasn’t perfect. I know I still have plenty left and feel I’m good enough to be a two-division world champion. I felt I had to prove a lot of people wrong. It wasn’t the perfect performance.

"I took off a few rounds towards the end. I lost my rhythm a little bit, my vision was a little impaired, but that’s boxing and you have to get on with it. It took a performance—Josh Buatsi is a very good fighter, and I knew I needed to be on my best, and I believe I was.”